Nottingham City Homes cuts rent arrears by 25%

The Rents team at Nottingham City Homes is helping tenants buck the recession, collecting £776,776 more in rent last year – making it the third best ALMO in the country for rent collection.

Rent arrears in Nottingham now stand at just over £2.8million. Although this is still high, it is a far cry from the £5million owed in 2006. Over the past three years the team has worked tirelessly to help tenants catch up on their arrears and provide a wider range of payment options. This has seen Nottingham City Homes soar from the 24th best ALMO in the country for rent collection in 2007/08 to the third best in 2008/09.

The increase in rent collection comes at the same time as a reduction in the number of evictions, having evicted 81 fewer tenants last year.

Most people in arrears are behind by a few weeks, but there are some extreme cases where tenants can owe more than 52 weeks rent. But this number has also significantly reduced. The number of people owing more than a year’s rent is now just five. This is down from 117 in December 2005.

Gill Moy, director of Housing Services at Nottingham City Homes, said: “We know times are hard for many of our tenants at the minute, but it is important not to let your rent arrears build up. A member of our Rents Team can help tenants find easier ways to pay, seek benefits they may be entitled to, and look at smarter ways of managing their money.”